Ordinary Days

Life has definitely kicked into "full gear" around here the past few weeks.

We're now doing baseball twice a week, Cub Scouts every other week, gym class once a week (for Parker), and our fall Bible study every week. So when we're actually not busy, I've been treasuring some down-time around the house.

I pulled out an old Thomas the Train set the other day for Parker. I didn't think he'd care much about it since he hasn't really shown an interest in trains thus far, but he played with it for quite a while. Maybe those hundreds of dollars of trains we have will actually go to some good use one of these days!

  He really enjoyed ringing the bell on the train station the best.

 Parker also decided the other day that he wanted to climb into the stuffed animal basket. He literally insisted that Brian put him in there...and then wouldn't come out. Who can blame him though...it looks pretty comfy in there!

 It's been raining a lot this week. This morning, Parker and I decided to camp out on the couch in our PJ's long after the "big guys" had left for school and work. I sipped my coffee and he laid next to me watching Baby Einstein. It was one of those "this is awesome" moments.

Of course the calmness doesn't last too long around here. Before you know it, he's running around with big brother's ninja sword swatting at something - usually me.

We did actually leave the house this week though, in case you were wondering. We went to JoAnn's to look at their Halloween stuff (which is already 40% off by the way, because their Christmas stuff is out!!!). 

Parker found this bee hat and asked me to put it on him.

"Cheese!"

 Then he proceeded to walk around the Halloween aisles yelling "AHHHH!" at all the spooky stuff...with the hat on of course.

But once he realized I was taking pictures of him, he immediately wanted the hat off.

We also drove to pick up Payton from school the same day. This is a rarity, because if we go up to meet Payton, I always ride my bike. But it was raining this day, so we drove to get him. We got their early so Parker got to do his most favorite thing...

Get in the front seat and go through the center console.

He seriously gets giddy when I unbuckle him.

This particular day, he was obsessed with my lip gloss. Go figure.

 Look at how happy he is?!?

With all this rain we've been having, I keep hoping it will bring some cooler weather. But no...

Still 92 degrees forecasted for Monday. Ugh! Can we PLEASE get into the lower 80's?

Sorry...didn't I promise not to complain about the heat anymore? Oops! :)

I'm off to find my raincoat for this afternoon...

Changing & Growing

"My legs hurt Mom!"

This is what I heard when Payton got out of bed first thing this morning. In the past I may have worried about it, but now I know...it's growing pains.

I don't remember experiencing growing pains myself, but from what I've read, it's much more common in boys, so maybe that's why. Payton has always been a tall kid for his age, but recently he's sprouted up so fast, I can't keep up with it! All of his pant-style pajamas are a good 2-3 inches too short. All of his "size 7" shorts are way too short, and all of the sudden his new tennis shoes that I bought "just a bit too big" so he would have some room to grow... now fit him. He's physically growing so fast I'm afraid I'm going to blink and he'll be standing, looking at me eye to eye.

But he's also growing mentally, which of course is a good thing, but startles me sometimes. He's blazing through thick chapter books, knows more about computers than I do, and has a really quick wit (which to me, is a sign of real genius). He makes me laugh out loud at least once a day.

Brian had one of our old computers refurbished so that Payton could have his "own computer." He thinks he's such hot stuff, let me tell you. Good thing he doesn't care that it weighs about 10 pounds.

He's also really into ninjas now too, ever since Lego came out with their animated "Ninjago" series. He's had me (and his Aunt Amanda - thank you again!!!) on a wild goose chase looking for this green ninja costume for Halloween.

I happened to be in JoAnn's today and all of their Halloween stuff was 40% off, so I found a ninja sword and nun chucks for about $2 a piece. Do you think he's happy about them? Well, let me re-phrase that... he was VERY happy about them. So much so, that he had to make these crazy ninja faces and run all over the house swinging the nun chucks.

Long gone are the days of Thomas the Train and Mario Brothers. I guess we've entered a new phase of boy-hood. One that involves daily deodorant application (no joke), swinging ninja swords, and size 10 clothing.

Where did my little baby go...

He's growing up so fast. I don't want to miss a second of it!

Love you buddy.

Darn Target!

I am really trying to be good about making a specific list before I go to Target/Publix/Walmart so that I will not deviate and buy unnecessary items. But darn it, if Target doesn't get me EVERY time!

This time though, it was the Dollar section. When the Dollar Spot starts carrying holiday-themed items, I'm doomed. I just can't pass up adorable fall plates for $1! But I have to also get the matching bowls, and utensils and another plate for big brother, and well, you can see how the Dollar Spot ends up being a $20 spot.

But come on, aren't these cute???

And this adorable ceramic candy dish - $1!

I think it looks awfully cute by our new photo of the boys:

And these little Halloween headbands were just too cute to pass up! $1- come on!

I have a couple of nieces that will look precious in them (shhh...Amanda if you read this, don't tell them. They will be arriving soon!).

Well Target, you've done it to me again.

Good thing I love you so much that I'll probably be back next week.

But this time I won't be stopping by the Dollar Spot. Promise. Well, probably not...

Recent pictures

It's hot today. Not like, "It's warm out here, think I'll get an iced tea." It's more like, "OH MY GOODNESS, I'm sweating and all I did was go out to get the mail!" Why is it still 90 degrees in the middle of September? Oh wait...I live in Florida. That's right. Well, all I'm sayin' is that this girl would really, really like a cold front. Seriously God... please? Pretty please?? With a cherry on top???

Now that I'm done ranting about the obnoxiously hot weather, here are some recent pics...


One of our favorite things to do on the weekends is go for family bike rides. There are so many wonderful little neighborhoods to explore nearby, not to mention the park, West Park Village, and the fountain. Of course the little guys always ask to go to Starbucks because they like to get a little treat while we're enjoying our coffee. I imagine this will get even more enjoyable in the coming months when it's cooler out and I can actually order a hot coffee and not an iced coffee because I'm sweating (sorry, promise not to mention the hot weather again).

Here they are with a "cake pop" and a cookie. And yes, they have matching shorts on. And yes, they are Chicago Bears colors. This was the only way Brian would allow them to go out in public with him in matching clothes. (Just kidding, but I'm sure he feels this way deep down). :)

In keeping with the "sweets" topic, we had a taste test this week. Have you seen these:

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of Oreos (something about the crisco filling that doesn't appeal to me). But all my boys love them, so I figured I would get these as a little fall treat.

Parker tried it first:

Look at how excited he is!

 This is his baby sign language for "Thank You."

So...Parker's vote: "GOOD!" 

(There's a reason we call him the garbage disposal)

Then it was Payton's turn.

Excitement at first...

Then he examines the packaging...

Takes a bite...

And then...

threw the cookie in the trash.

Payton's vote: "NOT GOOD."

Why mess with success Oreo? Just stick to what you know and do chocolate cookies & plain white cream filling.

And speaking of feeding your kids super healthy stuff...

This is what Parker had for breakfast one morning this week.

No joke.

He's had a cold and hasn't had much of an appetite. He saw these Fritos in the snack bin and grabbed them insisting he wanted them. I took them and put them back and he started crying, so I figured, the poor kid is hungry and this is the only thing that sounds good to him.

Okay, it won't kill him. 

And dang if that boy wasn't so happy eating them!

Here's another pic that I posted on Facebook last weekend of Brian & Parker cuddled up watching football together. Aren't they cute???

I could post a bunch more random photos, but I'll save some for later.

TGIF!!!

Have a great weekend everyone.

Birthday Post - Part 2

Yesterday was Brian's birthday, and although we will always have to contend with the sadness & remembrance of 9/11 on his special day, I think we managed to make it a nice celebration for him.

He got lots of wonderful cards from loved ones, and the cake that the boys made turned out really great!

Since Brian had to work all day, we celebrated in the evening by going out to dinner as a family.

 Even Parker was particularly well behaved (he must have known it was daddy's birthday).

When we got home, we sang Happy Birthday and enjoyed the yummy cake!

(Parker couldn't take his eyes off the candles)

Then everyone worked together to blow them out:

Note to self: when you cover a cake with powdered sugar...don't let 3 people blow out the candles.

Parker was so confused by all the white sugar dust on the table.

After that, I couldn't get a good picture to save my life. 

These boys were in full silliness mode!

It was a wonderful evening to celebrate our favorite man of the house! We love you Brian!

Oh...and this is how I found Payton a couple hours later, sleeping in bed.

Maybe cake right before bedtime makes you sleep upside down?!?!

Birthday Post - Part 1

I love to celebrate birthdays! I mean, I really, really love to celebrate birthdays. For the kids, I really like to "do it up" and decorate their bedroom doors the morning of, and surprise them with gifts and fun activities. So, what's a girl like me to do when she marries someone who doesn't like making a big deal of his birthday??? You have to surprise him, that's what!

Since Brian never wants any attention on his birthday, I decided to surprise him with a little dinner party with some of his closest buddies last weekend. I ordered in his favorite food from his favorite Italian restaurant, and had everyone show up after work on Friday evening. Little did I know, two of his friends thought it would be even better if they dressed up like Mike Ditka!

You tell me... does he look surprised???
IMG 2231 from Stacy Heckman on Vimeo.

Then of course, they had to put a fake mustache on Brian too...

 We had a such a great time, that I totally forgot to take any pictures! I did manage to get one quick pic after the cookie cake came out and we sand Happy Birthday to him (notice the name on the cake? - Ha!). But other than this, you'll just have to trust me that we had a wonderful time.

 Yesterday, the boys and I made Brian's favorite chocolate cake. I was pleasantly surprised how smoothly it went. Payton followed all the directions as I read them to him, and Parker happily sat by and watched.

Can you tell how excited they are in this picture? Just the ingredients alone got their sugar high's goin!

 Then of course, the best part of making a cake...licking the beaters!

Today is the "big day" so I'll post more about that tomorrow!
Happy Birthday to the most amazing husband I could ever wish for!!!

Recently...

I'm sitting at the kitchen bar on Saturday morning enjoying a bit of "down time" while the baby is napping. Brian is in the bedroom, on - what sounds like - a very important business call, and Payton is happily playing with Legos. My new Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin candle is burning next to me and all feels right with the world (it doesn't take much to make me happy - apparently, just some quiet time and a good candle).

So recently...

 The front door went from this:

To this:

(note to self: we need a new door mat. Maybe a monogrammed one??)

And a few other fall decrations have appeared throughout the house.

The lighted fall leaf garland and pumpkins above the entertainment center:

(I love the way this looks at night)

 My new fall subway art along with another pumpkin on the kitchen counter:

And I made a little trip to Bath & Body works yesterday and picked up some delicious smelling soaps and candles in a variety of fall flavors.

(It makes me want to wash my hands all the time!)

And speaking of pumpkin-y things, I went to Fresh Market last week and picked up these yummy goodies:

The coffee is really good - very flavorful. The Reese's pumpkin was for Brian, and the cookies were for me & Payton. Fresh Market cookies are THE BOMB!

And since we're on the topic of high-calorie foods...have you ever tried Talenti Gelato? Oh. My. It reminds me of the gelato I used to eat when I lived in Italy. It's THAT good. And it's THAT fattening. Of course, it's really rich, so you only need a small bowl to feel completely satisfied.

This is one of my favorites, Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup:

 

But my favorite is their Black Cherry. I normally wouldn't have picked that flavor, but they were giving out samples at Publix and I almost accosted the sample lady and took the whole pint. It was that good.

Okay, on to some other items that are calorie-free!

I scored a new purse this week at my fav store, Francesca's Collection. My old black purse, which I had purchased at Target, was starting to fall apart. Literally. The shoulder strap was shredding, which kind of makes it hard to carry around.

Anyhow...this beauty was calling my name the moment I walked into the store:

It has beautiful hardware, is buttery soft, and has LOTS of compartments, which this organized girl loves!

And the BEST part...it was only $30!!!

Apparently it is "last year's style" and it was the last one in stock, so they put it on major clearance. I have to say, I love something even more when I get a good deal on it.

On a completely unrelated note, here are some recent pics of the boys:

Parker and I were talking about elephants the other day and what kind of noises they make, what color they are, etc. Then it was time to pick up Payton from school and he ran to his stuffed animal basket and pulled this little guy out:

His name is "Gerald" for those of you who don't recognize him from the Mo Willems "Elephant & Piggie" book series. He carried him around all day! It is so cool that Parker is really starting to "get" what we are teaching him. His little brain is such a sponge right now, I hope I am filling it with lots of good things!

He is also very into these Edy's fruit bars. They have no artificial coloring added to them, which I love. And they taste great!

And for those of you not on Facebook, I created a little "drawing wall" the other day in our hallway. Basically, I just covered the wall with some Ikea craft paper I had laying around. The boys LOVED it!

Of course this is an activity that has to be closely monitored. But so far, Parker has not become an errant Picasso on any other walls.

Okay, that's all I've got for now. Off to do some laundry before heading out for baseball.

Have a great weekend everyone!